Nature versus Nurture
by Sanded Silk
Summary: After witnessing a murder, Sakura is forced to make a decision that will, either way, change her life forever. NejiSaku, rated for blood. Discontinued


New story! Now that I'm done with all of my other stories, I'm thinking I should probably start another one. This one is about gangs. Sakura witnesses a murder that a member of Konoha's most ferocious gang commits. I'll take it from there. :D

**Disclaimer: I can't think of something witty or funny to say here, so I'm just going to say that I don't own anything. **

--Sanded Silk--

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Sakura didn't want or suspect anything to happen to herself as she walked down the nearly-deserted streets in the quiet edge of Konoha with her mid-back length pink hair swishing and bright emerald eyes innocently wide. She was headed for the market, with her usual red sleeveless shirt, a pair of loose black capris that rolled up to her shins, and a black headband that wrapped behind her long cherry bangs around and down, behind her ears, to the nape of her neck. On her feet, she wore white sneakers with thick soles.

Unsuspecting, she pattered down the sidewalk towards the market area, hoping not to be late for the new stock of mangoes that she heard was coming in.

Suddenly, from behind a building, Sakura heard a faint moaning, pierced here and there by a blood-chilling scream. Sakura froze, and a cold shiver ran through her small body. What was that?

It came again- a low, moaning sound, followed by a scream of pain. A male's scream, she realized. Swallowing her heart, which had somehow forced its way up her throat, Sakura struggled to calm herself. Should she walk on like she didn't hear anything, or should she peek around the corner of the building to see what was going on?

Steeling herself, Sakura ignored the bloody, black feeling creeping up her spine, and edged toward the buildling. Another scream rang out, more heart-wrenching and painful than the previous one. Sakura stopped, and swallowed forcefully. She blinked fearfully, and considered running. _No, _she told herself. _Someone could be dying!_

Taking another breath, Sakura took a bold step to the corner of the buildling and peeked around it.

A man with rich brown locks and a red streak of mysterious substance down either cheek was holding another man by his collar. The man who was hanging by his collar had blood streaked all over every inch of his body. His eyes were nearly completely filmed over, and his mouth was gaping open. So much blood covered his body that Sakura could barely make out the hue of his skin and hair. He had numerous gashes around his neck and chest, including some on his shoulders, arms, and legs. His clothing was torn, and one of his shoes were missing. He was the source of the moaning.

The man who was holding the bloody one by the collar wore a brown leather jacket over a white t-shirt and black jeans, sported a pair of black spike-soled boots, had a red bandana folded and wrapped over his forehead and around his head, and held a long, blood-coated knife in his fist. He murmured something into the face of the man whom he was holding, and plunged the knife deep into the area of the other man's chest where the heart rested. With a long, chilling scream which slowly died to a sigh, the bloodied man died.

Sakura clapped her hand over her mouth and gasped, her stomach wrenching and turning crazily. The man with the brown hair dropped his victim roughly onto the ground, wiped his knife on his white t-shirt, and stuck it into a hidden sheathe underneath his jacket. Then he turned, and his eyes locked with Sakura's wide ones.

Sakura would never forget those eyes. The pupils were dark brown and slitted. The eyes themselves were narrowed into slits. As the corner of the man's mouth lifted into a sneer, Sakura could see the fangs veiled by his lips. She clapped her other hand to her stomach.

As the man advanced, his hands covered in blood, Sakura's mind began to run crazily. Somewhere in her mental rants, she realized how strange the man's features were- his red-streaked cheeks, his impossibly-narrow pupils. It occured to her that the man might be from Konoha's most feared gang, a group of boys who sported the most exotic, strange physical features, like the ones of the man standing before her.

A gang member. Sakura took a shaky step back, and nearly choked. The realization hit her like a barrage of stones. _Crap. _

The man was standing in front of her before she had a chance to turn and run. He reached up and grabbed her wrists, ignorant to the fact that he was staining her hands red with blood. Sakura stared fearfully into his eyes. Her limbs were completely frozen by a cold, nerve-racking brace that held her body still in a clammy-fingered grasp. Sakura's mind screamed at her, _Fight back! Fight back!_, until it was only a string of meaningless words uttered by the mouth of her conscience.

"Whatcha think you're doing, pretty?" The young man spoke first. He was gazing straight into her eyes, relaxed but intimidating, with his slitted pupils.

Sakura stuttered meaningless sounds, her viridian eyes wide open.

The boy smirked ominously. "I should let you go- you're too cute to upset." He leaned in, studying her face. Sakura leaned backwards slowly, genuinely scared.

The man sneered again. "But I can't let you just walk off after seeing what you saw. You can see my point, can't you?" He put on a mock expression of apology and pain. Sakura didn't know what to do in response, so she just nodded. The man let out a bark of laughter, and turned around, dragging Sakura along with him. "You're coming with me."

Sakura let out a small cry of pain. The man ignored it, and continued on his way. He pulled her down a lonely alleyway, behind a row of seemingly-deserted buildings. Sakura had to stretch her legs and to practically jog to keep up with his long strides, and even then, it was hard to keep up with him; especially since he was holding her by both of her wrists. After what seemed like forever, he stopped and switched her wrists into one of his large, masculine hands. "From here on, I can't have you seeing where we're going."

Sakura didn't bother trying to struggle away from him as he pulled off his bandana from around his forehead. He looked at her curiously for a moment, as if trying to figure out something. Then, he roughly turned her around, switching on her wrists around so that he was holding her hands together from behind. Using his mouth and other hand, he swiftly tied the bandana around her eyes and head quickly.

Satisfied with his handiwork, he roughly turned her back around. Without waiting for her to regain her balance, he sqatted down and wrapped his arms around her slim waist and her arms. With a grunt, he hoisted her up easily onto his shoulder. Sakura let out a small cry of surprise, which he ignored again.

His shoulders must have been wide, because she could feel that her hips fit snugly between the crook of his neck and the bend between his upper arm and the end of his shoulder. His arms slipped down from her hips to her knees. He shouldered her like a sack of potatoes to adjust himself to the new burden, and walked on.

Sakura bounced slightly on the larger man's shoulder as he walked. Every time she bounced, she felt the breath being squeezed out of her stomach. Whenever she relaxed her back, her lips would brush his rib, and that bothered both her and her captor. However, whenever she tensed her back and lifted her upper body up from his back, her lower back would start straining almost immediately. No matter whether she relaxed her back or not, she was in an awkward position.

Finally, she sighed and relaxed her back, but tilted her chin away from his rib. This way, he was comfortable, and she was at least slightly comfortable.

When he finally stopped, he put her down on her feet and turned her around. She could feel his chest move against her back as he inhaled and exhaled. "I did what you wanted me to do," He said, and Sakura knew he was talking to someone else. "But I ran into a little trouble along the way. I brought back the cause of the trouble, as you see here."

Sakura, for the first time since he put her down, felt the aura of the other person in her and her captor's proximity. She knew right away that the person was a male. It was ominous, heavy, almost hard to breathe in. It was rich and hazy, but dark and intimidating as well. It reminded her of a desert breeze- forbidden, abrupt, refreshing, pressuring. Though she couldn't see the person whom the aura belonged to, she felt now even more terrified than when she witnessed the murder.

Standing slightly bent over, Sakura heard and felt the third person approach and stop in front of her. His breath tickled her neck and face, and made the hair hanging by her face tremble. For a long moment, no one spoke or moved. Sakura could feel the third person's stare penetrating her blindfold, and possible her outer wall, searching her soul and reading her personality.

Finally, the mysterious third person lifted his hand and, with surprising gentleness, removed her blindfold. His fingers brushed her hair, and then her temple, sending shivers ripping through her skin like thousands of tiny bursts of electricity. Sakura blinked her eyes slowly, and the face of the silent third person slowly came into view.

He wore a pale-beige t-shirt, with the sleeves roughly slashed off, revealing part of his shoulders and his upper arms. His shorts, baggy and soft-looking, were long, ending well below his knee, and dark-blue. He wore black sneakers, with white graffitied laces. His calves were muscled, but not excessively. They were long and sleek, hairless and smooth. And yet, Sakura knew he could easily outrun her.

His features were even more exotic than her captive's. He had silky, dark, chestnut hair that swung halfway to the base of his back tied back in a loose ponytail. His eyes were the strangest thing on his whole body. They were silver, pearly orbs. They showed no emotion at all, and were lidded, as if nothing interesting had happened to him for the longest time. His skin was pale- paler than her's, perhaps, and was absolutely flawless. His mouth was set in a straight, emotionless line, and his chiseled jaw was set, but not stiffly. He regarded her with his blank eyes, and she stared back with more wonder than fear. No one spoke for a while.

Sakura could tell than this stranger was of the most power in the gang. Her captor, rash and intimidating and dominant as he had been, now stood silent and respectful, his head bowed slightly.

Finally, the pearl-eyed stranger, without lifting his gaze from her, spoke. "Kiba," He said in a low, smooth voice. Sakura's captive, whose name apparently was Kiba, nodded. "Yes, Neji." Neji. "We will be considerate this time, and give this young lady a choice."

For a moment, Sakura was relieved. _Whew! They're going to let me go! _And then, her brow furrowed with realization. _He said "this time". Does that mean other people before me had been caught witnessing one of their murders?_

She wasn't given a lot of time to ponder her thoughts, as Kiba nodded again. "Yes Neji."

Neji blinked slowly. "Miss," He said, this time addressing Sakura. "What is your name?" _My name...? _For a moment, Sakura was lost in the man's eyes- pools of oblivion, yet sharp as a knife.

Sakura opened her mouth, closed it, and opened it again. "Sakura."

Neji nodded. "Sakura. I take it you observed, by accident, Kiba's...er, deed." Sakura nodded. "Well then," Neji said, tilting his head to the side a fraction of an inch, "I obviously can't let you leave this place and blab what you saw. So, I will introduce you to a split in your path. You can either allow Kiba here to kill you- and don't be alarmed, he will finish the deed quickly. Or, you can become a member of our group. You would fit in our group other than your gender, too- you have the exotic features that our gang is known for." He glanced at her pink hair, and back into her viridian eyes for emphasis.

Sakura blinked slowly. _So they weren't going to let me live anyway. At least, not freely._

Kiba protested politely. "But, Neji, our gang is made up completely of boys. To add a girl- I don't know, but wouldn't it cause problems?"

Neji shook his head. "If Sakura chooses to join us, I will take her under my personal care. The other boys won't meet her without my supervision." Kiba seemed satisfied.

Sakura blinked again at the sudden burst of compassion these ruthless gang members were showing, before focusing on her two choices again. If she died, her life would come to an end- obviously- and she wouldn't have a chance to pursue that medical career she had been climbing towards. But, if she chose to live and join the gang, she would have to live the rest of her life doing crime and having her face pasted in the "Wanted" section in the newspaper. She would also never be able to meet her friends or family under usual circumstances anymore. Not for the rest of her life.

It was a hard choice, really. Sakura bit her lip. Limited life, or death? Sakura narrowed her eyes at the ground between her and Neji, and slowly looked back up. "I choose..."

Neji leaned forward slightly. "Yes?" Sakura could feel Kiba's hands tightening around her wrists, as if he was waiting eagerly for her to choose death. She could see him dancing and shouting, Yay! Another person to kill today!

Sakura swallowed. "I choose to join your gang."

Neji, unshaken, nodded. Kiba, however, wasn't going to back down easily. "Sakura, you do realize the risks of entering this gang, don't you? All of our members are boys- boys who haven't met a woman in years. To join our gang won't be easy for you, if you know what I mean."

Sakura shrugged, which was hard in her position. "I... can protect myself." She turned and gave Kiba a quick, but piercing look. Now was not the time to act small and weak, she knew. If she was going to live through this new lifestyle, she was going to have to harden up and at least appear tougher than she was.

Neji nodded again. "Fine."

He took her by her arm gently, but firmly. "Kiba, I'll take Sakura from here." Kiba let go, somewhat reluctantly.

With an air of dominance, Neji led Sakura down a few winding alleys. "Since this will be your new home," Neji said, gesturing to the dark, narrow streets around him, "You will have to memorize and get used to these alleys. Getting lost will happen to you a few times."

Sakura nodded, and allowed Neji to guide her farther down the path.

Presently, they came to the edge of a long river. Farther down the sandy shore was an abandoned dock. As they walked along the shore to some other destination, an idea popped into Sakura's head while she was staring at the sparkling water. "Neji, can I borrow your knife? And then, can we stay by this river for a moment? I want to do something."

Neji didn't see anything wrong with her request, and handed her his long, slim knife with a red and black handle. Sakura took it and walked camly down to the wooden dock that hovered barely an inch over the lapping water.

She knew better than to try and escape. Neji was multiple times more stronger and faster than her. Plus, though she had a knife, Sakura knew that the chances of him winning a struggle against her was much larger. Sakura sighed, slightly depressed, and walked onto the dock. She knelt down at the end of the wooden extension, her back facing the water.

Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and leaned back, plunging her head into the water. Her hair was quickly soaked from the tips to her scalp.

Sitting up and grabbing her hair into a loose, long ponytail with her hand, she took the knife in her other hand. For a few moments, she sat still, her eyes closed, feeling the stoic stare of Neji wrapping around her and embracing her. Then, in one swift movement, Sakura slashed the knife through her hair at shoulder height.

Tiny scraps of hair floated down around her- a flurry of pink, reflecting the soft light of the sun. Sakura turned towards the ocean and threw her long strands of hair out into the water. With sad eyes, she watched the hair float down the river and out of sight.

Then, she tilted her head forward and combed her now-short hair over her face. She grabbed the hair that stretched across her face from ear to ear, and slashed a good two three inches off, leaving long bangs that brushed her nose. She extended her arm over the water, slowly this time, and released her fistful of hair. Another batch of loose pink hair made its way downstream and out of sight.

Instead of parting her hair down the middle, she parted it more to the right of her scalp. She leaned over and stared at her reflection in the moving, lapping water. She found herself staring at a girl with rugged pink hair and weary, sorrowful eyes.

Satisfied with her new look, Sakura brushed her hair back with her fingers. The wind caught stray strands of hair and twirled them out of the pink locks still attached to her head. The soft breeze blew freely through her hair, combing through it and drying it. It twirled her hair, stretched it straight, furled it in different shapes and spirals.

Sakura stared out into the river. She could barely see the other edge, but wasn't focusing on really seeing anything. Her mind was worlds away. Her eyes were welled up with unshed tears as the faces of everyone she knew flickered through her mind. Sakura blinked away the moisture threatening to leak from her eyes. _The less I look like myself, the less likely everyone will recognize me if they see me, _she thought mournfully, and sighed. _But I guess, even with my hair short, anyone would recognize the color._

Finally, Sakura decided it was time to leave. She stood up, the muscles in her calves tensing, feeling more powerful and peaceful than ever. She passed the hand not holding the knife through her hair, and stared at the river for a long moment. Finally, she turned.

Neji was watching her, darkly and silently, from the shadows. Instantly, any power Sakura felt earlier floated out of her with the wind at the sight of the mysterious, long-haired leader. He was leaning against the wall of a building with his shoulder, his arms crossed. His head was lowered, but his blank eyes were rolled up towards her, staring directly at her, like a bull about to charge. His hair fell in graceful archs about his shoulders, and hung, straight and dark, down his shoulders and back.

To Neji, the girl had suddenly gained a new air of power, of confidence. Standing there, with her hand in her newly-shorn hair and her legs spread apart a few inches, her other arm down by her side and tense from clutching the knife, her clothes dirty and ripped, her eyes rippling with mixed emotions- though she was short, Neji had never seen a more powerful, controlling-looking woman than the one standing before him.

Staring for one last moment at her hair blowing around her face, his eyes focused on hers, and he reached out an arm, beckoning for her to come to him.

Sakura obliged quietly. She took down her hand, and stepped off the dock to her captor. He took his knife back, and took her by her wrist again, as if afraid to let her slip away. Stealing one last look at the now-emotionless girl, he turned back into the darkness, leading her along.

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**A/N: **Hmm. I think this story is starting to look plotless. Ah well, I'll daydream something up later. I know what's going on later in the story, but for now... hmmph.

--Sanded Silk--


End file.
